Giving Life to Ideas and Sharing Your Spiritual Experiences

Reed Hastings, the CEO of Netflix, wrote a fantastic book called No Rules Rules about the innovation culture pioneered by Netflix. It's easy to take streaming services for granted today when we have a plethora of choices. However, many years ago, when Reed Hastings reinvented the culture at Netflix, he chose the analogy of a sporting team. He stated that a sporting team is not like a family. Everyone does not have to be best friends with each other. Also, sporting groups are very comfortable changing over time. Hence, key players for a couple of seasons may be benched if they become surplus to the team's requirements in the future. This was critical for Netflix, who wanted to be on the bleeding edge of technology. They adopted containerization, cloud computing, and other vital technologies simply by following through with the sports team analogy. They hired technical people at astronomical prices, ensured that individuals constantly did their best work, and were never afraid of letting people go or readjusting salaries if their skillset was devalued over time. Every manager was asked to rate employees on one key question. "If this person were to leave tomorrow, would you do your utmost to retain them'? If the answer to this question was "No," then the Netflix team would dig deeper into the issue and discuss if the employee was indeed fit for Netflix.?

You can review the latest Netflix culture deck?here.

A couple that stands out are "Avoid Rules" and "You make wise decisions despite ambiguity." One of the best examples of this approach is when a leader from a traditional software company joined Netflix and had to sign his first purchase order of a few hundred thousand dollars. He went to his boss at Netflix for approval and was told that it was his job to decide what was best for Netflix and then execute the decision. The man was paranoid because, in his previous company, the boss had to approve even a small stationary withdrawal from the office store. The idea that he had the autonomy to decide on a hundred-thousand-dollar purchase without oversight was initially overwhelming but tremendously liberating.?

However, this approach of radical honesty and sport-team culture was not without challenges. Some people found it hard to adjust to the culture and develop meaningful relationships at work. Many people seek comfort and stability in the workplace. They want their colleagues to be an extension of their family because they spend far more time at work than at home during workdays. It mattered that their colleagues liked them, shared their lives with them, celebrated their success, mourned their losses, and genuinely cared for them. I have worked in such organizations, and while they were slower in innovation, they had far greater employee loyalty and retention. Most organizations are going through such rapid change that they are now somewhere between the sports team and family cultures. They are not radical enough and don't need to be as aggressive as Netflix to embrace the sporting culture fully. However, they know they must come out of the comfortable family culture where employees choose comfort over risk-taking and process over innovation.?

As organizations move through these cycles, some older employees drift away. The new employees hear all the exciting branding from marketing and HR and are excited to innovate and make changes. However, as they come and present their new ideas, they hit this brick wall of resistance from existing people who know the systems and processes inside out. They share a hundred reasons why the new architecture will not scale, the new tool will not work, or the new process will not meet requirements. The new joiners get frustrated and either leave or join the chorus of disgruntled employees who show up to work, do their bit, and leave.

So does that mean you cannot innovate in such organizations? Of course, you can, but you must learn to communicate effectively. Here are a few key things you can do.?

• Don't start big: Most people come in with fresh ideas and immediately want to implement them. They present new ideas to their leaders, conduct demos, and vociferously address the need for change. I have been guilty of this many times. This usually turns other people off since they don't feel the new person understands the system and its complexities enough to devise a reasonable plan. It's much better to start with a small innovation and push it through. Do this for a few months, and in doing this, collaborate with a few people. You will understand the system, while others will start trusting you.?
• Don't be the solo flyer: One of the most alluring things is to try and be the face of innovation and change in an organization. You may have many big ideas, and most may be good, but you always need a team to execute them. When you hold onto an idea and want to ensure you get credit for it, you can never let go of it. This means others can take it up, innovate, and make it their own. One of my best ideas gained traction when I let it go and allowed some colleagues to experiment with it and canvas for it. They found a couple more backers, and gradually, the organization saw enough people using it to formalize it.?
• Don't share a big idea in one single meeting: Most people are already busy managing their full-time jobs and homes. When you paint a picture of a massive transformation, they freak out because they immediately visualize the quantum of work needed to make that change. It's always better to break up your idea into smaller Lego blocks and start with some easy ones. As you gain success and credibility, gradually unfold the bigger picture and how much progress has already been made.??

Communication is the most critical contributor when it comes to the success or failure of an idea. Taking your time, starting with smaller ideas, and sharing ideas allows them to grow naturally and blossom. When you are in a rush, then most likely, your idea would meet an early death.?

You may wonder what the idea creation and dissemination process has to do with spirituality. Just like ideas, the spiritual journey is also fragile. If you end up sharing too much too early, you risk losing everything and becoming disillusioned.

Meeting Your Spiritual Master

Reflecting on my life, I can see that I spent a lot of time looking for something. It was their weird feeling of being contended and restless simultaneously. As a child, I would read spiritual books and wonder why I was not born at a time when I could meet masters described in those books. Since my parents were spiritual, I followed my mother to our local temple and volunteered there for four years. That built a beautiful bond with god. However, as I matured, I found science-based explanations for the world and turned to atheism because most people explaining the world were atheists, and I was imitating them. A minor depression followed, and it healed as I reverted to mantra chanting and spirituality. I explored Tibetan Buddhism and a couple of popular spiritual teachers in India, but I was still incomplete - a jigsaw puzzle with a significant missing piece. This constant feeling of being happy yet lost finally took me to the feet of my guru. A small yellow book cover at the airport kept calling out, and I kept ignoring it for a few months. Finally, I read If Truth Be Told, and something ignited within to meet this young monk who claimed to have realized the truth in this lifetime. When I first met him, nothing magical happened, but something started shifting within me. I went to him thinking of myself as an almost perfect specimen of humanity. However, as I sat in his presence, all the ugly thoughts and tendencies I had suppressed bubbled out. It was a scary yet unique experience. I followed some of his teachings, started doing basic Mantra Sadhana, and had a few beautiful experiences.?

My guru has consistently advocated keeping your spiritual experiences private. He says when you begin walking on the spiritual path, you have a tender, beautiful, and fragile flame within you. The more you practice and the more privately you nurture it, the more it grows, and the world notices your transformation. When you start sharing your experiences without having the necessary spiritual growth, people's comments and questions boost your ego or make you doubt your truth. Both of these can have disastrous consequences.?

Since I learned everything the hardest way, I assumed that such rules didn't apply to me and kept sharing my experiences. You can actually feel that energy leaving you as you speak about it. It took me down a few interesting paths, and finally, my guru's grace helped get me back on the right track.?

There is a beautiful song by the legendary Baul singer Parvathy Baul.?

For a few days, deep within your heart

In the corner of your body-house

Keep your love for Shyam secret!

Speak in hints in grazing fields

So that no one should guess

No one should hear, no one should know!

?

When Shyam's memory troubles your heart

Looking at the black clouds passing by

When tears fill your eyes, sitting in the kitchen

Put some wet wood in the stove for smoke

For a few days…

?

You can read the complete lyrics?here.?

This is some of the best advice you can get when you begin your spiritual journey. Just like ideas, a beginner's spiritual journey is fragile. The spiritual experiences are like your beloved whispering the sweetest words of love on a moonlit night. Sharing them is like going to Twitter the next morning and putting them out for public consumption. When you expose it to the world's harshness, the you risk derailing your entire journey.?

The other thing that happens is you feel the incessant urge to share the glories of your guru. You have experienced the transformation his teachings and methods have made in your life. However, most people you meet have yet to be ready for this information. They question you, laugh at you, or ignore you entirely because they cannot identify with you. Hence, it's best to stick to these beautiful verses by Lord Krishna.?

ida? te nātapaskāya nābhaktāya kadāchana

na chā?hu?hrū?have vāchya? na cha mā? yo ‘bhyasūyati

This instruction should never be explained to those who are not austere or to those who are not devoted. It should also not be spoken to those who are averse to listening (to spiritual topics), and especially not to those who are envious of Me.

The easiest way to spread the teachings of your guru or your culture is to become an embodiment of the same. Your conduct will become the greatest calling card of your guru.?